UK Digital switchover ends - Northern Ireland completes on 24th October 2012
Starting just after midnight on Wednesday 24th October, the next switchover of 2012 will see the number of homes with digital-only terrestrial reception in the UK go up by 647,500 from 97.54% to completed.
Viewers in Northern Ireland who use the Brougher Mountain, Divis, or Limavady "full Freeview" transmitters (and about 43 smaller relay transmitters) will have no analogue television from Wednesday 24th October 2012. Unless you use cable or satellite to watch television, if you don't use a Freeview box or set, your screen will be blank.
Do not expect ANY FREEVIEW television service from midnight until 6am - or a late as mid-afternoon on some relay transmitters (see below for timetable). This means you will not be able to record Freeview programmes overnight. --- but you can watch online here - Watch live UK TV channels and listen to live radio now.
Most people need only perform a "full retune" (or "factory reset" or "shipping condition") on their Freeview box or TV, but it would be impossible with five million homes covered by the transmitters, for no-one to have a problem.
RTE One, RTE Two and TG4
Viewers with Freeview HD (DVB-T2) equipment who receive a signal from the Brougher Mountain, Black Mountain and Carnmoney Hill will also receive the "Northern Ireland Mini-Multiplex" and will receive RTE One and RTE Two and TG4. See Northern Ireland RTE1, RTE2, TG4 special mini-multiplex from 24 October. Most other viewers will be able to watch services directly from transmitters in the republic. You will need the correct equipment:Coverage Maps
From Wednesday 24th October 2012 you MUST have a digital television device to watch TV. If you do not have a digital receiver, from Wednesday will have a blank screen.
You will be served by the Freeview HD service from Wednesday, but please see this six-point checklist to ensure you really are watching in high definition: Are you really watching free TV in high definition?
Switchover help scheme
If you are over 75, get (or could get) Disability Living Allowance, Attendance Allowance, Constant Attendance Allowance or mobility supplement; or have lived in a care home for six months or more; or are registered blind or partially sighted and need assistance, please see The Switchover Help Scheme.Cable and satellite
Cable (Virgin Media) and satellite (Sky, Freesat, fSfS) viewers are not affected by the changes. Remember, however, that you may be using analogue TV to watch on a second or third set and it might need a Freeview box.Existing "full" Freeview users
If you already use Freeview, and can receive all the channels now, check your TV or box is not listed here - TVs and boxes that do not support the 8k-mode. If it is, you will need a new Freeview box.If you are not on the list, you should scan your box from around 6am.
When you now rescan, you MUST do a "first time installation" or "factory reset" scan (sometimes called "shipping state"), not a simple "add channels". Do the procedure you did on "national retune day", September 30th 2009, see Freeview Retune - list of manuals.
If you can't recall the procedure or find the manual, please see generic clear and rescan procedure.
If you scanned during the first phase of switchover on Wednesday 10th October 2012 - you will have to do it again on Wednesday 24th October 2012.
Using Freeview with Windows Vista
Please see Switch over and PC-based systems because you need some updates for your system to work.Boosters and amplifiers
If you live close to the transmitter, you may have to disconnect any "boosters" from your aerial system. The new, more powerful digital signals may overload any amplifiers and result in no reception! When looking for them include a check for distribution amplifiers, loft boxes, set back amplifiers, bypass Amplifiers, hidden masthead amps in a loft space and any dodgy active splitters.For full details, see: Freeview signals: too much of a good thing is bad for you.
Homes with no Freeview at all will now have Freeview Light
If you had no Freeview service before, you will have the BBC channels digitally from Wednesday 10th October 2012. This is a single multiplex of the BBC channels (radio, television and text) for most people.However, if you were on the fringes of reception from one of the main Freeview transmitters, you will now get all the Freeview channels.
If you didn't get this limited Freeview service on Wednesday 10th October 2012 then you may need a new aerial.
If you are served by a public service (relay) transmitter, which are:
Armagh (9am), Ballintoy (3pm), Ballycastle (9am), Banbridge (noon), Bangor (noon), Belcoo (noon), Bellair (9am), Benagh (3pm), Black Mountain (6am), Buckna (noon), Bushmills (noon), Camlough (9am), Carnmoney Hill (9am), Castlederg (9am), Claudy (3pm), Conlig (6am), Cushendall (noon), Cushendun (9am), Derrygonnelly (3pm), Draperstown (9am), Dromore (3pm), Ederny (noon), Glenariff (3pm), Glenelly Valley (2pm), Glynn (2pm), Gortnageeragh (6am), Gortnalee (3pm), Kilkeel (noon), Killowen Mountain (9am), Larne (7:30am), Leitrim (3pm), Lisbellaw (9am), Londonderry (6am), Moneymore (3pm), Muldonagh (noon), Newcastle (noon), Newry North (noon), Newry South (3pm), Newtownards (9am), Plumbridge (11am), Rostrevor (9am), Strabane (7:30am), Whitehead (11am)
...you now need, from around from 9am (unless shown otherwise) on 24th October 2012 to rescan, and you will get a second Multiplex with ITV 1, ITV 2, ITV 1 +1, Channel 4, Channel 5, Channel 4+1, E4 and More4.
And that's your lot if you have a standard Freeview receiver, see Freeview retune - poor public service transmitters.
You may wish to install Freesat for more channels, see Compare Freeview Light and Freesat TV.
Overlap with other regions
Because of the location of the transmitters, some viewers will find that they can pick up the signal from other BBC and ITV 1 regional studios.Those viewers with "Freeview HD" (or other so called D-Book 7) receivers will find they are presented with a menu to allow them to pick which BBC One region is shown on "button 1", and which ITV 1 regions appears as channel 3.
Viewers with older equipment may have to resort to doing a manual to get the correct signal for the desired transmitter.
All Freeview boxes automatically scan the available broadcast frequencies looking for channels, and they do this from C21 to C69. Older Freeview boxes will, if a duplicate version of a channel is found whilst scanning, such as another BBC One region, placed it in the 800-899 channel range.
Some Freeview boxes will pick the strongest signals for the "primary" number positions, and some will detect the different regions providing a choice when you perform a "scan for channels".
For more details, see: Digital Region Overlap
Originally published on 11th October 2012 at 00:00 by Brian Butterworth
Help with Freeview, aerials?
In this section
Wednesday, 24 October 2012
Johann: All transmitters broadcast HD services as these are carried on one of the Public Service (PSB) multiplexes. It is the Commercial (COM) multiplexes that don't have as extensive a coverage area.
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M
MEM11:42 PM
Thanks for taking the time to reply Mike but to tell you the truth all this digital business has got me down a bit. I was looking forward to a full digital line up but to just been able get a small selection of channels has left a sour taste.
What's especially galling is that I've read reports of Dublin residents receiving the full freeview service as well as the saorview channels. Makes me wonder why I bother to pay a licence fee.
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Thursday, 25 October 2012
K
Kerry1:32 PM
Why since DSO have i lost majority of my channels. I am receiving them from Brougher mountain. I can no longer receive 21 24 or 27. I have looked and see that Brougher is transmitting these at very low rate. Why? Will this be fixed. It was my understanding that after DSO the signal and quality would increase not decrease and leave me without the channels I have had for approximately the last 18 months and nowhere to get any explanation.
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R
reland to 1:47 PM
Brian is playing a blinder helping poeople in Northerh Ireland to receive Irish tv.Years ago i was in a loyalist controlled town and a nationalist community applied for a licence to relay signals by cable from an RTE transmitter.The reply given to the appllication was no foreign tv would be allowed in their area of control.I know Derry had led the way in the early 70s.Brian you are doing as much work as the politicans who brought about the Good Friday agreement.
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Kerry: I made a posting about this on the Brougher Mountain page:
Brougher Mountain full-Freeview transmitter | ukfree.tv - 10 years of independent, free digital TV advice
Up until now I have never seen such a marked difference in strength of PSBs vs COMs. It would appear that this is the way it is going to be.
Unfortunately it could be that the high-power PSBs, which are on adjacent channels to the COMs, could be causing your receiver to be desensitised. See the Brougher page for more of an explanation.
I imagine that you aren't alone. Whether you can strike a balance by using an attenuator (or removing booster) is something that can't really be predicted - it's a try it and see sort of thing.
The COMs are on (a bit) higher power than they were before switchover.
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L
Linda6:24 PM
my mum can't set her video to record freeview.Tuned in okay but video can't pick up a channel?
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Linda: What is the video recorder she is using?
Those that take VHS tapes usually only can receive the former analogue.
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C
Cee9:45 PM
Have re-tuned TV and have received all channels including RTE. However RTE has sound and no picture. All other channels are OK. Have re-tuned many times but still the same. Anyone know how to fix this?
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K
Kerry 9:50 PM
Thanks for your answer Dave. I find it very unfair to have lost my channels so some people getting their signal from Divis can get all their channels.
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K
KMJ,Derby10:03 PM
Cee: You need to use either a Saorview box or Freeview HD box to receive a picture on the RTE channels. This is because Saorview uses the MPEG4 video format, unlike standard definition Freeview which is only MPEG2.
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